[Amyth Prabhakar]

Originally Posted by Baddychat

Congratulations Amyth on your new acquisition and wishing you thousands of happy and safe miles on your new ride. Thanks for putting up such a detailed review with tons of pictures.

Just a question, since you mentioned that your budget was in 20-25 L territory, did you consider the Jeep Compass petrol automatic. Did you compare one against the other.

Thankyou very much.

We already own the more powerful 2.0L Diesel, Jeep Compass and getting another one was out of question. Not that it was not better, like other feature-victims, I too wanted something fresh and feature rich.

I guess Jeep did launch a face-lift with some frills. But somehow, I was drawn to seltos more than jeep. My heart beat was in sync with the Seltos.

If Jeep had woken up before the Koreans and had launched the edition they have now currently, my answer to your question would have been different. Hope you got it! Yes, I would have definitely considered the new jeep compass.

This is the one we already have.

[Baddychat]

Originally Posted by Amyth Prabhakar

Thankyou very much.

We already own the more powerful 2.0L Diesel, Jeep Compass and getting another one was out of question. Not that it was not better, like other feature-victims, I too wanted something fresh and feature rich.

I guess Jeep did launch a face-lift with some frills. But somehow, I was drawn to seltos more than jeep. My heart beat was in sync with the Seltos.

If Jeep had woken up before the Koreans and had launched the edition they have now currently, my answer to your question would have been different. Hope you got it... yes.. I would have definitely considered the new jeep compass.

This is the one we already have.

Attachment 2110207

Thanks for your reply Amyth and it does very well answer my question. Not that I have anything against the Seltos, since I did not see it in the list of cars considered, hence the question.
You do have an nice looking garage !

[Amyth Prabhakar]

Originally Posted by sweetvar26

Nice thread.

I have to agree with you that getting that blue shade is a painful process. I ended up waiting 4 months I believe to get that. I lucked out as a Kia dealer in another city had the shade and they were agreed to transfer the delivery process to that dealership from the booking that was placed in another city.

I didn't know Kia introduced the black interiors for the GTX+ DCT option. When I purchased the Seltos during the launch, I had to go with the two tone interiors for the top end variant even though I wanted the black interiors. I might consider switching to the black seat covers if there is a way I can get the interiors in all black.

When was your purchase ? Was it after March 2020 or before ? Because KIA introduced the new updated versions in March and as far as I know, all top trims now come with all black interiors.

Just check the model year - MY - on your VIN. They might have given you an older version as you went for a blue shade. For all MY=20, meaning Model Year 2020, the car gets black interiors.

To tell you the truth, the beige/black combo is what looks more premium than all black. All black, makes the cabin look dull.

[Invincible8789]

That’s a elaborate and detailed write up.

Can anyone here give me an heads up to ceramic coating from carzspa? I had been to there outlet near RV Engineering college on Mysore road. Their packages seems to be reasonable but haven’t heard much about them so want to know if any fellow bhpians have got any detailing done by them.

[cpabhijit]

Originally Posted by Amyth Prabhakar

The White Tiger - KIA Seltos GTX+ 7DCT – 2020 Model with All Black interiors.

[/list]
Dislikes:

• Non-illuminated door buttons and poor door padding at this price point.

By this, you mean like in the pic below?





These are from my Polo GT TSI.

I find it hard to believe that these buttons are not backlit in the Seltos!? The korean siblings are known for such features, no?

[Amyth Prabhakar]

Originally Posted by Invincible8789

That’s a elaborate and detailed write up.

Can anyone here give me an heads up to ceramic coating from carzspa? I had been to there outlet near RV Engineering college on Mysore road. Their packages seems to be reasonable but haven’t heard much about them so want to know if any fellow bhpians have got any detailing done by them.

I do not have any experience with them so I will refrain from commenting. Get it done wherever you want, but do your homework well.

Originally Posted by cpabhijit

By this, you mean like in the pic below?

Attachment 2110466

Attachment 2110467

These are from my Polo GT TSI.

I find it hard to believe that these buttons are not backlit in the Seltos!? The korean siblings are known for such features, no?

Yes, that is right. Old Hyundai cars like the accent and i20 had them. But unfortunately, they are missing in Seltos and Creta and it is indigestible for us.

Originally Posted by QuadraticAmoeba

I do have one question (and this was why I had booked the diesel / TC Seltos): if most of the car driving is commute to office and that too in Bangalore with its bumper-to-bumper traffic, does the DSG make sense? You can switch to Neutral in signals, but not in stop and go traffic, right? Can DSG owners comment on this?

I really don't have an answer to your most valid question. Somehow I am managing with workarounds and I don't even know if what I am doing is right. Let us see how far it goes. Time will give you the answer.

At crawling speeds( less than 10),you can shift to Neutral, I have been doing it. But not sure how good is the new habit that have I picked up.

[mankuthimma]

Great review @Amyth Prabhakar! Congratulations and wishing you many many years of happy ownership !

You have captured awesome amount of details! I myself hadnt seen many of the menu options from the entertainment system that you have mentioned in the review

I could draw many parallels with your experience as well.

- Booked in Feb, then lockdown happened, got priority delivery from first batch of cars in June 2020 once the factory reopened.

- Yeah, even I wondered why all the car manufacturers turned a blind eye to this segment of users like us and literally handed everything over to Creta/Seltos. And boy! how they ruled the mindshare of the people!! Atleast this year, Skoda/VW is making an attempt with Kushaq/Taigun. Hope there will be more competitive choices available for new buyers in the coming days

- Once booked, was anxiously waiting for Creta 2020 ever since it was showcased in Auto Show hoping that they will atleast bring chinese version of interiors, even though I could compromise on external looks. But personally, it was a big disappointment !

- As you mentioned, it is not a easy decision to choose the right Seltos! Lockdown was spent on the colors dilemma, just the way you posted - comparing the pics from brochures, showroom and real world. Blue was the popular choice at home, I must say there is still no unanimous decision, even now !

- And the mother of all mental battles, atleast for me, whether GTX+ or HTX, IVT or DCT or AT. Your city driving experience confirmed my understanding that DCT needs a more conscious driving style in the city. But diesel AT was also not a straightforward alternative too due to potential DPF issues with prolonged city drives. Entire lockdown period was spent on weighing pros and cons, eventually settled on AT!

- Lastly, we also have Jeep Compass in the extended family exactly the same shade as yours. But it is a barebone petrol Sports MT edition. At almost the same price point, Seltos offers more bang for buck than this particular variant of Compass!

[sagwal]

Thank you Amyth for sharing such a wonderful review of KIA Seltos GTX+ 7DCT – 2020 Model

This is my most detailed review ever read on Team-BHP.

Originally Posted by Amyth Prabhakar

The White Tiger - KIA Seltos GTX+ 7DCT – 2020 Model with All Black interiors.

Wish to Have:

• Paddle shifters, Electronic parking brake with Auto hold functionality. [Most wanted]
  

Paddle shifters are a must with this powerful engine and DCT.

• The DRL’s are bright and always on and there is no way at all to turn them off or disable them. They turn off only when the vehicle is in stationary position with the handbrake on or when the indicators are turned on. The same behavior is not seen in the night and they remain on always, irrespective of blinkers status. The pilot lamps can be turned on or off independently. But they remain on when the headlights are turned on.

These DRL's look very beautiful.

The ground clearance of 190mm is not too high and does not require a foot board to climb in, unlike other bigger SUV's.

Ground clearance is also very good and sufficient for our Indian roads. GC should not be very high as it makes the vehicle unstable at high speeds.

Seltos is powered by a new BS-6 compliant, Turbo charged, 4-cylinder, Direct Fuel Injection, 1.4L (1353 cc displacement to be more precise) engine that churns out 138 horse power @ 6000 rpm and 242 Nm torque @ 1500 to 4000 rpm.

Torque RPM band is very wide

The Gear Box:

• The gear shifts are super smooth and super-fast and can hardly be felt during the shift operations. However, a very faint/mild jerk can be felt ( only if you are alert and attentive )while it is up-shifting from gear 1 to gear 2 and from gear 2 to gear 3 and beyond which everything goes almost un-noticed as the vehicle picks up speed.
• The down shifts cannot be felt at all and can only be seen in the MID console after the change.
  

Good to know that jerk is not felt at all during downshifts.
I drive a 7-speed DSG and jerks are felt when it downshifts from D3 to D2 or D2 to D1 in moderate traffic in the city.

SPORTS MODE = Sheer Driving Pleasure:

The SPORTS mode is best suited for highways and gets extremely jerky and notchy if used within city limits. However, this is not a hard and fast rule and it can still be used on empty stretches within city as well.

Jerky ?? Is it during downshifts or upshifts ??

DSG is less jerky in the city when in sports mode. Sometimes I shift to S to avoid D3 to D2 downshifts when driving in moderate city traffic.

Fuel Efficiency:

• The real world fuel efficiency for the GTX+ 7DCT variant isn’t great. This is a sports variant and is not meant for mileage conscious consumers.
• The below figures are based on tank to tank calculation method and not from the MID display. The MID displays shows slightly higher figures, at least 2-3 km more than actual real world figures.
• Under City limits: It manages to deliver 8-9 kmpl and occasionally 10 kmpl.
• Highway Drives: Nothing more than 13-15 kmpl no matter how sedate the driving style is.

City Mileage is good but highway mileage is less.
Is it due to DCT?

Once again Great Review

[Amyth Prabhakar]

Originally Posted by mankuthimma

Great review @Amyth Prabhakar! Congratulations and wishing you many many years of happy ownership !

You have captured awesome amount of details! I myself hadnt seen many of the menu options from the entertainment system that you have mentioned in the review

Thankyou Sir! Hope it helped you.

Originally Posted by sagwal

Thank you Amyth for sharing such a wonderful review of KIA Seltos GTX+ 7DCT – 2020 Model

Jerky ?? Is it during downshifts or upshifts ??

Thankyou for all the appreciation.

Coming to your questions.

It is the ride quality that gets jerky and not the gearbox because of high power on offer in sports mode. With the sports mode on, it makes the engine highly responsive and the vehicle begins to leap forward with more power during upshifts, even with light inputs from the accelerator pedal, which ideally is not required for city driving conditions. The power surge from the engine gets cut off frequently due to constant braking in heavy traffic and the engine never gets a change to fully open up. It is this push-pull effect that makes it jerky. It works best on wide open roads where the traffic density is less.

The engine is less responsive and smoother in ECO mode, so it is the best for stop and go traffic.

Originally Posted by sagwal

City Mileage is good but highway mileage is less.
Is it due to DCT?

No, it is the other way round. Mileage would be less in cities for all vehicles irrespective of the engine-gearbox combination and more on highways as there would be less interruption to the power flow.

DCT is basically tuned for performance and not made for stop and go traffic and yes of course mileage will definitely be less under all conditions, be it city or highway.

[Amyth Prabhakar]

Second Service Update:

I got a message on wats app from the dealer which said, failing to get the service done on time at the authorized service center will void the warranty.

As per the service schedule, the second free service is done at 5000 km or 6 months from the date of purchase, which ever is earlier.

The vehicle hasn't clocked much due to pandemic and in my case it fell under 6 months category.

I took an appointment for the service in the morning last week and got it done. Luckily I was attended as soon as I went in. VIP treatment!!

Here are the updates:

KM on the ODO @ the time of Second Free Service: 3284

Did I report any issues?: NO issues of any sort till date.

The following things were done as a part of second free service:

• ECU was updated with the latest software.
• DCT Gearbox software logic was updated.
• General check up of vehicle.
• Top up of vehicle Fluids.
• Air Filter was cleaned but not replaced due to less kilometers on ODO.
• Fuel pump rubber mount was replaced with a new one.
• Plain water wash was done along with interior vacuum cleaning.

Please note:

Fuel pump rubber mount was replaced not due to any complaints from me or due to faulty fuel pump.

There was absolutely no issue with the fuel pump. It is perfectly alright in my vehicle.

Only the rubber mount at the bottom was replaced.

It seems that KIA has now started procuring the fuel pump rubber mounts from a new vendor and it is being replaced for all vehicles that fall under certain VIN range as a part of recall.

This whole thing was misinterpreted by media as fuel pump replacement. Actually it is only the rubber mount at the bottom and not the fuel pump that is being replaced.

Upon asking the SA as to why it was being replaced, I was told that the rubber mount at the bottom might expand and break in future as it was slightly bigger and of a lower quality and cause troubles. Hence, to mitigate future problems, it was replaced with a new and a better quality rubber mount.

Sorry, I was not allowed to take any pictures or videos inside the service center. Upon request I was allowed to see the replacement work at the service center. Entire servicing was done in my presence. The entire servicing took about 45-50 minutes and I preferred to stay there and watch, instead of going home and coming back later to pick it up.

KIA Service:



SOP and Protocols:



Advertisements:



Entering the Service Station:



All checks passed: OK -> No issues found. Everything seems to be in very good condition.



ECU + The DCT gearbox software logic getting updated.

There were a total of two updates:



Second Free Service Invoice:

Did I pay for anything ?: No, it was entirely free.



Vehicle getting cleaned and washed:



Have been seeing this fogging issue in headlights, turn indicators and even in the ice cube fog lamps every time after a water wash. I spoke to SA about this and he told me to not worry about it. I don't know if there are any small gaps or porous materials inside for water to seep in. I have heard that this is normal and it does dry off after some time. Very strange though. I haven't seen such things even in my 9 year old car, Verna Fluidic.



Post Service Improvements:

• The engine response seems to have improved a lot with better low end torque and it really has improved the drivability in city. The pick up seems to have increased and feels much better now. The engine has opened up very nicely.
• The DCT gearbox is responding much better in slow moving traffic and not showing any urgency to shift up quickly like before.
• I haven't tested it on highway, but will surely do and give an update.
• The ECU-update has fine-tuned some of the parameters and has made things better and has improved the overall performance. Both Engine and Gearbox feel refreshed.

No Remap, But Extended Warranty:

I was considering to get a remap done and was also in talks with Wolfmoto as I was not finding the city driving good. But after this update from KIA, the old behavior has been wiped off and I am very happy and dropping the idea of remap and instead will go and buy the extended warranty in a month or two.

Finally I was asked to give the feedback:

I am a happy customer:

[kaustubhp]

Hello team members. Since my query is small and also urgent, I did not bother starting a new thread but instead preferred asking here. Mods: if is something I ought not to have done, please remove/change suitably. Apologies for inconvenience caused, if any.

I am finalising my Kia Seltos GT line variant. Manual transmission. The purchase and decision is immediate but there is some confusion. I am being given a choice between GTX+ and GTX(o). For convenience, I am setting out the feature comparison below and want to understand if spending Rs. 1.4 Lakhs (actually 1.6L because the GTX+ is in Dual Tone) worth it.
1. Side and curtain airbags.
2. Blind spot monitor.
3. 360 degree camera.
4. Wireless charging and rain sensing wipers.

My drive will mostly be in the city and part highway connecting Gurgaon and Delhi. I have ample parking space right now and do not think 360 camera is of immediate requirement. I may not shift to a cramped up society anyway soon so maybe not that of a great importance.

Wireless charging and airbags are the 2 very important features on which my decision is fluctuating. Please help! Thanks.